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Tim Kurkjian's 2007 APBA Draft Preview |
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Here are the top players at each position going into the 2007 APBA Draft. Each team's needs is under the positional rankings. I also added a 1st round mock draft because I'm Tim Kurkjian damnit and I've cut out every box score from the newspaper for the last 25 years. I'm God's gift to baseball fans. Man I rule. |
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10/31/06 |
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Player Name / MLB Team / Round Projection* |
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Starting Pitchers
1. F. Liriano / MIN / 1
2. J. Weaver / LAA / 1
3. J. Schmidt / SF / 2
4. M. Mussina / NYY / 2
5. C.-Ming Wang / NYY / 3
6. B. Arroyo / CIN / 3
7. A. Harang / CIN / 3
8. K. Escobar / LAA / 4
9. J. Verlander / DET / 4
10. N. Robertson / DET / 5 |
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Relief Pitchers
1. J. Papelbon / BOS / 1
2. F. Rodriguez / LAA / 1
3. J. Zumaya / DET / 2
4. T. Hoffman / SD / 2
5. J.J. Putz / SEA / 2
6. A. Otsuka / TEX / 3
7. C. Ray / BAL / 3
8. R. Soriano / SEA / 3
9. J. Rincon / MIN / 3
10. J. Broxton / LAD / 4 |
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Third Base
1. G. Atkins / COL / 1
2. E. German / KC / 2
3. W. Helms / FLA / 3
4. R. Zimmerman / WSH / 5
5. S. Spiezio / STL / 6 |
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Second Base
1. C. Gomez / BAL / 2
2. J. Carroll / COL / 5
3. D. Uggla / FLA / 6
4. M. DeRosa / TEX / 6
5. T. Iguchi / CHW / 8 |
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First Base
1. P. Fielder / MIL / 2
2. S. Hatteburg / CIN / 4
3. K. Youkilis / BOS / 4
4. A. Lind / TOR / 5
5. A. LaRoche / BOS / 5 |
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Shortstop
1. H. Ramirez / FLA / 4
2. D. Eckstein / STL / 6
3. J. Bartlett / MIN / 7
4. S. Drew / ARZ / 8
5. C. Counsell / ARZ / 10 |
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Catcher
1. J. Bard / SD / 1
2. M. Barrett / CHC / 4
3. C. Coste / PHI / 6
4. R. Hernandez / BAL / 6
5. D. Ross / CIN / 8 |
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Outfield
1. L. Scott / HOU / 1
2. C. Duncan / STL / 2
3. G. Matthews Jr. / TEX / 4
4. R. Ibanez / SEA / 5
5. R. Church / WSH / 5
6. Alex Rios / TOR / 6
7. J. Willingham / FLA / 7
8. M. Cuddyer / MIN / 8
9. M. Bradley / OAK / 8
10. M. Cabrera / NYY / 9 |
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*The Round Projections are actually the round value of the player; it doesn't necessarily mean where they will end up. Some will get drafted higher, some will get drafted lower. If you don't understand screw you I'm Tim Kurkjian baby and you don't need to understand what I'm saying because I've cut out every box score for the last 25 years. |
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1st Round Mock Draft |
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*1. LA- F. Liriano / SP / MIN |
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*Regardless of the coinflip, SP Francisco Liriano and SP Jared Weaver will be the first and second picks in the draft. Basically, each of the two teams will end up with an A starting pitcher. |
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The two-headed monster of J. Santana and F. Liriano will lead this team to it's first postseason appearance. |
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*1. BOS- J. Weaver / SP / LAA |
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Weaver's no Jake Peavy, but he'll compliment an already loaded lineup very nicely. |
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3. MIL- L. Scott / OF / HOU |
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They're only weakness is at OF, and they'll pick up the best outfielder and offensive player in the draft with this 3rd pick. |
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4. NYC- J. Bard / C / SD |
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This team needs help everywhere, and the AJ Pierzynski experiment didn't work last year. Catcher is a pretty thin position in the draft, so they pick up the .400+ on base % catcher before anybody else can. If he passes him up, BOS will no doubt take him with the early 2nd round pick. |
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5. ATL- J. Schmidt / SP / SF |
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He may not have the most dominant card, but GM Fochesato can't resist taking an old Stallion champion. He's an all-star caliber player and has the ability to become an A pitcher on any given year. |
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6. PHI- J. Papelbon / RP / BOS |
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Easily the best RP in the draft, this pick will completely upgrade an ailing bullpen. It's not everyday an AB reliever is available in the draft. |
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7. NYY- G. Atkins / 3B / COL |
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They essentially don't need any positional help, and it would be too early to be dumping picks on pitchers, so they take Atkins and force a trade with a team looking for a 3B. Atkins also plays 1B, which increases his trade value. |
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8. CHI- F. Rodriguez / RP / LAA |
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They're not going to complain about dropping him in 2006 for Ronnie Belliard, but Craig's Cubs love their pitching and want him back. K-Rod will be a nice addition, a great compliment to Mo. However, if Scott, Bard, or Atkins fall to the 8th pick, the Cubs will pull a Yankees strategy and go down the trade route. |
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